NEW YORK, April 2, 2008 – The WNBA announced today the first group of players who will participate in the 2008 WNBA Pre-Draft Camp at the University of Tampa on April 4-5. Several additional players who recently completed their 2007-08 season will be added later this week.

This group of top women’s basketball prospects from around the world will showcase their skills and compete against one another in drills, half court scenarios and full court scrimmages during three on-court sessions. The camp offers coaches and general managers from all 14 WNBA teams an opportunity to evaluate the top young players in advance of the 2008 WNBA Draft presented by adidas, which is expected to be the deepest in league history and will be held at Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club in Palm Harbor, Fla. on April 9.

League-appointed personnel will conduct player physical examinations on Thursday, April 3, followed by two on-court sessions scheduled for Friday, April 4 (9 a.m. – 11:30 a.m., 6 – 9 p.m.) and one session on Saturday, April 5 (9-11 a.m.).

The 2008 WNBA Draft presented by adidas will begin at 1 p.m. EDT at the Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club, which is owned by Washington Mystics President and Managing Partner Sheila Johnson, in Palm Harbor, Fla. ESPN2 will provide exclusive first round coverage of the 2008 WNBA Draft presented by adidas with continued coverage of the second and third rounds on both ESPNU and NBA TV. WNBA.com will serve as the premier destination for complete analysis and comprehensive coverage throughout all three rounds.

This will mark the third year that the WNBA Draft is held during the week of -- and in the city of -- the NCAA Women’s Final Four. The WNBA Draft and NCAA Women’s Final Four were held in Boston and Cleveland in 2006 and 2007, respectively. In previous years, the event was held at NBA TV studios in New Jersey while prior Pre-Draft Camps were conducted in the either metropolitan New York or Chicago.

In addition to the WNBA’s Pre-Draft Camp on April 4-5 and WNBA Draft on April 9, Tampa will host the NCAA Women’s Final Four on April 6 and 8 at the St. Pete Times Forum as well as the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association National Convention.

The initial list of accepted invitees for the 2008 WNBA Pre-Draft Camp follows:

Allen, Charel (Notre Dame)
Anderson, Jolene (Wisconsin)
Atunrase, Morenike (Texas A&M)
Banks, Janese (Wisconsin)
Beck, Kimberly (George Washington)
Berezhynska, Valeriya (Rice)
Bulger, Meg (West Virginia)
Comfort, Lady (Temple)
Doma, Natalie (Idaho State)
Elliot, Sarah (Kentucky)
Gissendanner, Kamela (Penn State)
Green, Danielle (Oklahoma State)
Holt, Amber (Middle Tennessee State)
Hood, Danielle (Hartford)
Humphrey, Tasha (Georgia)
Kelly, Crystal (Western Kentucky)
Lacy, Natasha (Texas-El Paso)
Lawrence, Sarah-Jo (George Washington)
Mahoney, Samantha (Kentucky)
Marsh, Dionne (New Mexico)
Mitchell, Leilani (Utah)
Nnamaka, Chioma (Georgia Tech)
Oakley, Shalamar (Coppin State)
Packer, Marscilla (Ohio State)
Pluimer, Lindsey (UCLA)
Quigley, Allie (DePaul)
Ross, Adrianne (Texas Christian)
Sanni, Olayinka (West Virginia)
Smith, Wanisha (Duke)
Sneed, JoKeirra (Louisiana Tech)
Suber, Rashida (Coppin State)
Tisdale, Angela (Baylor)
Vaughn, Krystal (Virginia Commonwealth)
Wilson, Tierre (Fresno State)
Walker, Marcedes (Pittsburgh)
Wright, Kia (St. John’s)
Young, Tamera (James Madison)
Zoll, Sharnee’ (Virginia)

The schedule for the 2008 WNBA Pre-Draft Camp follows:

2008 WNBA PRE-DRAFT CAMP SCHEDULE (all times local)

University of Tampa
Bob Martinez Sports Center
401 W. Kennedy Blvd.
Tampa, FL 33606
(Directions Available Upon Request)

Friday, April 4
9 – 11:30 a.m. Session 1
11:30 a.m. – Noon Media Availability
6 – 9 p.m. Session 2

Saturday, April 5
9 – 11 a.m. Session 3

*the last 30 minutes of each session are open to media

About the WNBA
The WNBA will feature 14 teams in 2008, with the Eastern and Western Conferences comprised of seven teams each. Atlanta will join the Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, Detroit Shock, Indiana Fever, New York Liberty and Washington Mystics in the Eastern Conference. The Western Conference will continue to feature the Houston Comets, Los Angeles Sparks, Minnesota Lynx, Phoenix Mercury, Sacramento Monarchs, San Antonio Silver Stars and Seattle Storm.

Seven WNBA teams now fall under the independent ownership model: the Atlanta Dream, Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, Houston Comets, Los Angeles Sparks, Seattle Storm and Washington Mystics. Force 10 Hoops, L.L.C., a group of Seattle businesswomen and civic leaders Anne Levinson, Ginny Gilder, Lisa Brummel and Dawn Trudeau, purchased the Seattle Storm on Feb. 28, 2008 while on Oct. 17, 2007, Atlanta businessman J. Ronald Terwilliger was awarded an expansion franchise, the Atlanta Dream. In addition, two teams entered the 2007 season with new ownership. Kathy Goodman and Carla Christofferson, two long-time season ticket holders, bought the Los Angeles Sparks on Dec. 7, 2006, while Hilton Koch, a long-time sponsor and season ticket holder, purchased the Houston Comets on Jan. 31, 2007. They joined Sheila Johnson’s Washington Mystics, Michael Alter’s Chicago Sky and the Mohegan Tribe’s Connecticut Sun as independently owned WNBA franchises.

The WNBA enjoyed one of its most successful seasons ever in 2007 with increased regular-season attendance, a new postseason attendance record, and Finals viewership on ESPN2 that was up 12 percent versus 2006. Spectacular performances from the world’s best women basketball players highlighted the WNBA’s 11th season. The Storm’s Lauren Jackson tied a league record for points in a game (47) and also became the youngest player ever to reach 4,000 career points en route to earning league MVP honors, while the Mercury’s Diana Taurasi scored 30 or more points per game a league-record 10 times. Led by 2007 All-Stars Taurasi, Cappie Pondexter and Penny Taylor, the Mercury capped the most exciting WNBA season ever by defeating the defending champion Detroit Shock in five games in the WNBA Finals.